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Sovietization of the Romanian Academy

At the end of WWII, the Soviet Union instated in all the countries where the Red Army was present a political regime that copied the one in the USSR. The process was called sovietization or communization, being a tool by which the political domination of the communist party was ensured by a physical repression apparatus and by the planned economy. Romania too had the historical misfortune of experiencing this type of regime between 1945 and 1989.

Sovietization hit Romania’s institutions hard, one of them being the Romanian Academy, established in 1866. For more than 80 years, the best Romanian and foreign scientists had been welcomed into the Romanian Academy. But the regime installed on March 6, 1945 abolished the old academy on June 9, 1948, by Decree no. 76. A new institution was established, the Academy of the Romanian People’s Republic, that later became the Academy of the Socialist Republic of Romania, where access was conditioned on the ideology of the communist regime. The consequences were extremely harsh, with 100 members being expelled and marginalized. Out of the 100 members, 33 academicians who had held the rank of minister were arrested, 20 of them imprisoned in Sighetu Marmației prison, known as the ministers’ prison, where 6 of them lost their lives.

Andrea Dobeș is a researcher with the Memorial to the Victims of Communism and Resistance in the former Sighet prison. She presented several cases of academicians who died there, and one such case was that of the historian Alexandru Lapedatu.

Due to the pain caused by gastric ailments and the lack of medical assistance in prison, on August 30, 1950 Lapedatu committed suicide by hanging, at the age of 73: Alexandru Lapedatu was arrested on the night of May 5 to 6, 1950 during the house search. They took three pocket phone books, a book on US history, a sum of money, a watch, two pairs of eyeglasses, a wallet with personal documents and suspenders. Among the objects taken, there was no material that could have interested the People’s Political Police or the Securitate. In the table drawn up in the spring of 1950 regarding the former ministers from 1918 to 1945 who were to be arrested, under the name of Alexandru Lapedatu it was mentioned that although he was not actively involved, he was a fierce enemy of the communist regime.

Gheorghe Tașcă, an economist and teacher, a minister of industry and trade in 1932 had a similar fate. Andrea Dobeș is back with details: Gheorghe Tașcă was arrested at the age of 75, on the night of May 5 to 6, 1950. He arrived in Sighet the next day and, unable to resist the conditions of detention, died on March 12, 1951. Historian Constantin Giurescu, imprisoned in Sighet for 5 years and 2 months, mentions pneumonia, in his memoirs, as a possible cause of Tașcăs death, in the context of a terrible general suffering. The former lawyer and undersecretary of state Alexandru Popescu-Necșești also mentions that he could hear him whining alone in his cell at night.

One of the most important Romanian historians of the 20th century was the scholar Gheorghe Brătianu, an expert in the Byzantine Empire. Imprisoned in Sighet, he died under unclear circumstances at the age of 55, in 1953.

Historians do not know even today whether he died from blows to the head, tuberculosis or suicide by neck artery cutting: As far as Gheorghe Brătianu is concerned, he was violently attacked in the pro-communist press since the fall of 1944. On August 15, 1947, invoking the existence of circumstances that required ensuring his security, he was forced into home detention in Bucharest, being under surveillance. He was arrested on the morning of May 6, 1950, and on May 7 he was imprisoned in the Sighet penitentiary. Constantin Giurescu also recollected in his volume of memoirs an incident that would have happened before Brătianu’s death. Giurescu had recognized Gheorghe Brătianu’s voice in the big courtyard. He couldn’t see what was happening outside, but he heard the sound of a thump. While Bratianu was being taken to the cell, Giurescu heard another blow, it sounded like a slap, accompanied by a series of curses. Bishop Ioan Ploscaru reports that the militiamen forced Brătianu, the day before he died, to collect pig manure from the yard with his hands.

The only academic who was brought before the court for a mock trial, was Iuliu Maniu. He did not lose his faith in God during the detention period, the future cardinal Alexandru Todea being the one who listened to his confession for the last time.

Andrea Dobes has details: On November 11, 1947, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the crime of high treason. From the War School in Bucharest, where the trial took place, he was transferred to the penitentiary in Galați, and on August 16, 1951 he arrived in Sighet. The great Iuliu Maniu was already very weak, almost paralyzed, and the journalist Nicolae Carandino was the one who took care of him until the last moments of his life.

The academics who survived imprisonment continued to live a life of misery and social degradation. Under surveillance, they were periodically re-arrested and interrogated. But posterity did not forget them, and in 1990, the re-established Romanian Academy welcomed them back to its ranks. (LS)

11 December 2023
April 4, 2023 UPDATE

FINLAND – On
Tuesday Finland became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization in a ceremony held at the NATO headquarters, where it submitted
the accession instrument to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The final
step before Tuesday’s ceremony was held on Tuesday at the NATO headquarters,
where Turkey was the last country to ratify Finland’s accession. US Secretary
of State Blinken hailed what he has described as a historic day for NATO,
saying Finland’s accession was precipitated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In 2022, Finland and Sweden asked to become members of NATO shortly after the
Russian Federation launched its war of aggression in Ukraine. While Finland
received the approval of all NATO members, Turkey decided to postpone Sweden’s
accession. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed confidence Sweden will
shortly become a member of NATO. Finland’s accession coincides with the
anniversary of 74 years since the signing of the Washington Treaty, the
founding document of NATO, on April 4, 1949, a landmark celebrated in Brussels
through a number of special events.

NATO -
Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday hailed Finland’s official
accession to NATO, saying the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is stronger
now. Our unity and solidarity will always prevail over the unprecedented
challenges in our region, the president tweeted. In turn, Prime Minister
Nicolae Ciucă welcomed Finland’s NATO accession and wished Romania’s new
partner good luck. Nicolae Ciucă pointed out that Bucharest also expects Sweden
to become a full member of NATO as soon as possible.

LEGAL – The legal
committee of the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday issued a favorable opinion for
the amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes tabled by the
Justice Ministry. The bill eliminated all the amendments previously adopted by
the Senate, including the introduction of a threshold for offenses that
constitute abuse of office. Ruling coalition MPs originally proposed the
elimination of wiretaps as evidence for corruption and tax evasion offenses,
but the amendment was eliminated. The Chamber of Deputies is expected to vote
the bill on Wednesday. From the opposition, USR deputy Stelian Ion criticized
the fact that coalition MPs have eliminated all amendments modifying the
Criminal Code and voted the form proposed by the government without introducing
a threshold for offenses constituting abuse of office. Stelian Ion Claims the
article in the bill will be declared unconstitutional and all such offenses
will be written off.

DISTINCTION – The Turkish
writer Orhan Pamuk on Tuesday was awarded the Doctor Honoris Causa title from the West University of Timișoara.
In his acceptance speech, Orhan Pamuk spoke about the role of literature today,
but also referred to a number of problems in his country, including the
February 6 quakes. The writer said Istanbul has evolved from a city with a
million inhabitants to a metropolis totaling over 16 million people, boasting a
huge library. The Turkish writer said the February quakes made him identify
with the suffering of Turkey. Orhan Pamuk is the recipient of the 2006 Nobel
Prize for Literature. His books have been translated in over 60 languages. Pamuk is one of the five laureates of the
Nobel Prize who are expected to visit Timișoara, the European Capital of
Culture in 2023.

ACADEMY – Romania’s highest
cultural and scientific forum, the Romanian Academy on Tuesday opened its doors
to visitors to mark its 157th anniversary. On this occasion, its
most representative venues such as the Academy Hall, the Academy Club or the
Memorial Museum, were opened to visitors who were also offered a guided tour of
the Library. The Romanian Academy boasts 14 sections, covering several domains
such as literature, linguistics, history, philosophy, mathematics, physics,
chemistry, biology, geonomics, technical sciences, science and IT, agronomy,
medicine, economic and legal sciences, art and architecture. The Romanian
Academy presently boasts 181 members and corresponding members as well as 135
honorary members. (DB & VP)

4 April 2023
April 3, 2022 UPDATE

NATO — Sunday marked 73 years since the setting up of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – NATO, and according to the national law, Romania also celebrated NATO Day, marking 18 years of membership. On this occasion, a military ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Gemina Infantry Division 4 Command in Cluj-Napoca (northwest), which was attended by the defense minister, Vasile Dîncu. Events were also organized by the Romanian Naval Forces on board the military ships from the ports of Constanţa, Mangalia, Brăila and Tulcea. President Klaus Iohannis said in a message on NATO Day that he would continue to strongly support the consolidation of the transatlantic relationship, which he considers to be the backbone of the Alliance and the community of democratic and security values which Romania is a part of. The PM Nicolae Ciuca said that Bucharest would make every effort to increase and strengthen the Allied and American military presence, in order to guarantee the security of its citizens. In turn, the defense minister, Vasile Dîncu, said that NATO accession brought Romania the strongest security guarantee in the countrys history, and the country now has a professional, experienced army, which has exercised its capabilities in missions in theaters of operations abroad.

Visit — On Monday, the Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu will have political consultations with the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Estonia, Eva-Maria Liimets, on the occasion of her visit to Bucharest, at the invitation of the Romanian Foreign Minister. According to a communiqué of the Romanian Foreign Ministry, the two officials will participate in a conference organized by the New Strategy Center think tank, with the theme Russias aggression in Ukraine. How can we build a more resilient NATO Eastern Flank, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea? Consultations will focus on discussing ways to develop bilateral ties, especially in relation to economic and sectoral cooperation between the two countries, with a view to properly exploring the existing potential.

PNL — The extraordinary congress of the National Liberal Party – PNL, in the ruling coalition in Romania, for the election of a new president of the party, will take place on April 10, the Liberals National Council decided on Sunday. 1,300 delegates will attend. Until the congress, the interim presidency of PNL will be held by the president of the Suceava County Council, Gheorghe Flutur. On Saturday, the Speaker of the Romanian Senate, Florin Cîţu, announced his resignation as president of the PNL. Many Liberals had previously called for his departure. They accuse Cîțu of causing tensions within the governing coalition, in its relationship with the Social Democratic Party – PSD, of not communicating with the party members and of having a bad public image, which affects the Liberals score in the polls regarding voting intentions. Cîţus opponents would like the party leadership to be taken over by Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă, who, according to the media, has a much better image in society and a coherent dialogue with the governing partners. Respected as a full-time professional military, Ciuca is, however, the protagonist of a plagiarism scandal, related to his doctoral thesis. The former Prime Minister Cîţu was elected only half a year ago, at the end of September 2021. At the time, clearly supported by the head of state, Klaus Iohannis, he won, in a tense congress, the elections against another former prime minister, Ludovic Orban, who had led the PNL since 2017.

Academy – The Romanian Academy on Monday celebrates its 156th anniversary. The anniversary is marked in the hall of the Academy by a festive general assembly and by screenings of documentaries, featuring the main moments in the history of the institution. Considered one of the first fundamental institutions for the consolidation of the Romanian modern state, the Romanian Academy initially had the mission to regulate the Romanian language and to study the national history. Subsequently, its activity has diversified to include all fields of science. Opinion surveys show that, along with the Army and the Church, the Academy is the institution which Romanians trust the most.

Covid – In Romania, the number of new COVID cases continues to drop, reaching 1,429 on Sunday. The authorities also reported 11 coronavirus-related deaths. Since the onset of the pandemic two years ago, more than 2.85 million cases of coronavirus infection have been reported in the country and more than 65,000 patients have died. More than 8 million people have been fully vaccinated. We recall that, as of March 9, no anti-Covid restrictions have been in force in Romania.

Ukraine — Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports that it has documented numerous cases in which Russian military forces have violated the laws of war against civilians in the occupied areas of the Chernihiv, Kharkov and Kyiv regions of Ukraine. In the period February 27 – March 14, the Russian soldiers are accused of one case of repeated rape, of two summary executions, of violence and threats against civilians. Soldiers were also involved in looting private property, from where they stole food, clothing and firewood. After the withdrawal of Russian troops, a mass grave was found in the northern Ukrainian town of Bucea. Nearly 300 people were reportedly buried there. Tens of bodies lay on the streets, some with their hands tied. “Russia has an international legal obligation to impartially investigate the alleged war crimes committed by its soldiers,” said Hugh Williamson, HRWs Director for Europe and Central Asia. He stressed that all parties involved in the armed conflict in Ukraine are obliged to respect international humanitarian law and the laws of war. (LS)

3 April 2022
April 6, 2018

GOOD FRIDAY– The most important events in Christianity are the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whose life and teachings are the foundation of Christianity. Today, Orthodox and Greek Catholic believers the world over, including Romania, a mostly Orthodox country, are marking Good Friday. Good Friday, the Friday before Easter, commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. This is a day of mourning in church, a day when Christians meditate on Jesus suffering and death on the cross.

SECURITY MEASURES – Over 50,000 employees of the Romanian Interior Ministry have been mobilised to maintain public order, safety and security across the country at Easter. Gendarme and police troops will be chiefly deployed around churches and other religious institutions. 250 thousand people are expected to attend more than 700 public events that will take place in Romania in the next four days. Traffic police, equipped with more than 300 traffic radars and backed by helicopters, will be monitoring traffic on Romania’s motorways at Easter.

ROMANIAN ACADEMY – Historian Ioan-Aurel Pop, the rector of the Babeş-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca (north-western Romania) was elected president of the Romanian Academy. He received 86 of the 148 votes that were cast during the General Assembly of the Romanian Academy. The newly elected president, who will have a four-year term in office, will take over the position 15 days since his election. The elections for four positions of vice-president and one of secretary general will be held on April the 20th. The former president of the Romanian Academy, Ionel Valentin Vlad, passed away in December 2017.

MARCH – The “Eudoxiu Hurmuzachi” Institute for the Romanians abroad, an institution subordinated to the Ministry for the Romanians Abroad jointly with the Lauder-Reut Educational Complex will be staging a March of Holocaust survivors dubbed “Let’s learn together’, in Poland, over April 9-13. The event, which has an educational character and is aimed at teaching students a dramatic episode in history, involves the participation of young people from 52 countries. The Romanian delegation includes students from Romania and the Republic of Moldova.

POISONING – A Russian military research base has been identified as the source of the nerve agent used for the poisoning in Salisbury, The Times newspaper reported. The source of the military-grade poison was revealed in a British intelligence briefing for its allies, and was used to persuade world leaders that Russia was responsible for the attack. Britain blames Russia for the poisoning on UK soil of the former double agent and his daughter with what it says was a Soviet-made military-grade nerve agent, something that Kremlin denies. More than 150 Russian diplomats from 28 countries, Romania included, have been expelled. Russia has also retaliated by expelling Western diplomats.

CONVICTION – South Koreas former President Park Geun-hye has been sentenced to 24 years in jail after she was found guilty of abuse of power and coercion, the BBC reports. The verdict was broadcast live and represents the culmination of a scandal which rocked the country, fuelling rage against political and business elites. Park was also fined 17 million dollars. She was found guilty of 16 out of 18 charges, most of which related to bribery and coercion. The former South Korean president has previously accused the courts of being biased against her has denied all wrongdoing.

HANDBALL – The Romanian women’s handball team CSM Bucharest are today meeting on home soil the French team Metz, in the first round of the Champions League quarter finals. In the three other matches, the defending champion, Gyor of Hungary will meet Buducnost Podgorica of Montenegro, FC Midtjylland of Denmark will face Vardar Skopje of Macedonia, and Ferencvaros Budapest of Hungary will take on Rostov-Don of Russia. The winners will qualify for the Final Four tournament. We recall that CSM Bucharest won the Champions League in 2016. (Translated by Elena Enache)

6 April 2018
April 5, 2018 UPDATE

ROMANIAN ACADEMY – Historian Ioan-Aurel Pop, the rector of the ”Babeş-Bolyai” University in Cluj-Napoca (north-western Romania) on Thursday was elected president of the Romanian Academy. He received 86 of the 148 votes that were cast during the General Assembly of the Romanian Academy. The newly elected president, who will have a four-year term in office, will take over the position 15 days since his election. The elections for four positions of vice-president and one of secretary general will be held on April 20. The former president of the Romanian Academy, Ionel Valentin Vlad, passed away in December 2017.

SECURITY MEASURES – Over 50,000 employees of the Romanian Interior Ministry have been mobilised to maintain public order, safety and security across the country at Easter. Gendarme and police troops will be chiefly deployed around churches and other religious institutions. 250 thousand people are expected to attend more than 700 public events that will take place in Romania in the next four days. Traffic police, equipped with more than 300 traffic radars and backed by helicopters, will be monitoring traffic on Romanias motorways at Easter.

MARCH – The “Eudoxiu Hurmuzachi Institute for the Romanians abroad, an institution subordinated to the Ministry for the Romanians Abroad jointly with the Lauder-Reut Educational Complex will be staging a March of Holocaust survivors – “Lets learn together, in Poland, over April 9-13. The event, which has an educational character and is aimed at teaching students a dramatic episode in history, involves the participation of young people from 52 countries. The Romanian delegation includes students from Romania and the Republic of Moldova. The project is part of the IEH “The Romanian Identity Caravan, which includes a series of cultural events destined to promote Romanian culture and to consolidate Romanian national identity, and is part of the Strategic Programme – “The Romanian Common Cultural Area – the Great Union Centennial 1918 – 2018.

HEALTHCARE – Romanian health minister, Sorina Pintea, on Thursday said a revision of the legislation on the purchase of medicines is needed, in order to make sure that suppliers who take part in tenders provide the necessary amount of pharmaceutical products throughout the duration of the contract. She also said that the line authorities are permanently monitoring the stocks and the consumption level of pharmaceutical products in order to intervene urgently and legally, so that the necessary amount of medicines be provided to patients. The statements were made after last month, the relevant minister requested a report with centralised data as to the lack of medicines or to discontinuities in the process of supplying with medicines hospitals and medical centres included in the national oncology program.

SKRIPAL CASE – The US diplomats who have been declared persona-non grata by Russia, in retaliation for the expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats by the US, in the wake of the Skripal scandal, on Thursday left the US Embassy in Moscow, on the last day set by the Kremlin for them to leave the Russian soil. Serghei Skripal, a former Russian double agent who was living in the UK and his daughter, Yulia, were poisoned with a nerve agent in Salisbury, south-western England on March 4. London has openly accused Russia of involvement in the case and has announced the expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats from British soil, a decision which was followed by similar measures taken by the US and over 20 other countries, with a total of 150 Russian diplomats being sent home. In late March, Russia, which denies any involvement, took a retaliatory measure, by expelling 60 US diplomats, closing down the US Consulate in Saint Petersburg and calling on London to reduce the number of its embassy and consular staff in Russia.

HANDBALL – The Romanian womens handball team CSM Bucharest on Friday will meet on home soil the French team Metz, in the first round of the Champions League quarter finals. In the three other matches, the defending champion, Gyor of Hungary will meet Buducnost Podgorica of Montenegro, FC Midtjylland of Denmark will face Vardar Skopje of Macedonia, and Ferencvaros Budapest of Hungary will take on Rostov- Don of Russia. The winners will qualify for the Final Four tournament. We recall that CSM Bucharest won the Champions League in 2016.(Translated by D.Vijeu and D. Bilt)

5 April 2018
Scientist Ludovic Mrazec

Scientist Ludovic Mrazec has had a great contribution to the development of geology in Romania as well as to the study of the origin of oil. . The founder of the Romanian Society of Geological Sciences and first director of the Geological Institute of the Romanian Academy, Mrazec also occupied the position of minister of industries and trade in 1920, but only for a short while. He was born in July 1867 in Craiova, southern Romania, into a family with Czech and Austrian origins. His father, a pharmacist, settled in Romania in 1861.

As a child, Ludovic was attracted by natural sciences but later he decided to follow the same career as his father. He studied at the Faculty of Pharmacy in Bucharest where one of his teachers was the reputed bacteriologist Victor Babeş. After graduation, Mrazec took up the study of geology and in 1894 he was appointed teacher of mineralogy, crystallography and petrography of the Faculty of Sciences within the Bucharest University. It was the beginning of a great career for Ludovic Mrazec, who in 1905 became a member of the Romanian Academy and later the president of this scientific and cultural institution. Academician Cristian Hera, the current president of the Romanian Academy, will next be talking about the personality of Ludovic Mrazec.

“The great achievements obtained by young Ludovic Mrazec made academician Constantin Istrati propose him, on May 25, 1901 for the position of corresponding member of the Romanian Academy. At the time he was 34, being one of the youngest elected members of the Academy. On April 11, 1905 Ludovic Mrazec became a full member of the Academy and on March 23, 1907 he delivered a brilliant first speech on the formation of oil resources in Romania. The document was recorded in the Academy’s Annals. On the same year, 1907, Ludovic Mrazec proposed that the well-known scholar Grigore Antipa should become a corresponding member of the Romanian Academy. In recognition for his merits, Ludovic Mrazec was elected Vice-President of the Academy between 1913-1916, to become President of the Academy between May 30, 1932 and May 31, 1935. During his presidency, he drawn up the project for the revision of the statute of the Romanian Academy and initiated the reorganization of this scientific forum. Together with Grigore Antipa he set up the Museum of Natural Sciences in Bucharest.”

Soil research was of particular interest to Ludovic Mrazec. His studies led to major breakthroughs regarding reserves of strategic importance for Romania: oil and salt. He was the first Romanian specialist to establish the link between oil and the organic matter accumulated in time. Also, in 1901 Ludovic Mrazec presented at the International Exhibition in Paris the first map of salt formations in Romania. He spent a lot of time working at the Geology Institute of the Romanian Academy, as academician Cristian Hera told us:

“At the Geological Institute, academician Mrazec set up, besides the Geology Department, which was the main department of the institute, an agro-geology department, which would later became the pedology department. The Geological Institute was established on June 19, 1906, following a proposal made by the then minister of agriculture, trade and domains. The institute was set up by royal decree and Mrazec was put at its helm. Under his leadership, which lasted until 1928, the institute became known for many outstanding results in the field, including with regard to soil science, more particularity matters concerning soil fertility and soil’s capacity to simultaneously and continuously satisfy plants’ need for water and nourishment. One first map of soil resources in Romania, drawn up at the Geological Institute, was presented at the Agro-Geology Conference in Budapest in 1909, and then, for the unified Romania, at the first Soil Science International Congress, held in the US in 1927”.

Ludovic Mrazec was a modest man, an introvert, and he sacrificed his personal life to science. He died in 1944 in Bucharest, not before deciding that the money that was to be used for flowers on his coffin and grave be given to the poor. Also, he did not want any official speech at his funeral.

(Translated by M. Ignatescu & L. Simion)

10 March 2018
December 28, 2017

GOVERNMENT — The Bucharest Government is today holding their last meeting this year. The Cabinet members are discussing a series of initiatives aimed at supporting the special fiscal status for people working in such fields as research and development, so as their net salaries should not go down as of January 1st, 2018, when the task of paying the social security contributions is transferred from employer to employee. The financial support is to be granted for a three-year period. Over 8,700 companies are expected to benefit by it.

BUDGET — Romania’s consolidated general budget went up to 1.21% of the GDP after the first 11 months of the year. Revenues from taxes and duties were smaller then expenditure with the staff and social assistance. According to the Finance Ministry, by year-end, the budget deficit will be maintained within the limit of 3% of the GDP.

ROMANIAN ACADEMY — The head of the Romanian Academy, Ionel-Valentin Vlad, who died on Sunday aged 74 was buried today in Bucharest. A synod of priests led by the Roman-Catholic Archbishop of Bucharest, Ioan Robu, officiated the funeral service. A commemoration event was also held on Wednesday, at the initiative of the Academy’s leadership and was attended by the Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church. According to a communiqué of the Romanian Academy, Ionel-Valentin Vlad was a pioneer in avant-garde domains of physics, and his death is a great loss for Romania. The Royal House of Romania has also deplored the death of Ionel-Valentin Vlad who was highly appreciated for his civic spirit, professionalism and academic rigor. The death of the president of the Romanian Academy is a big loss for the Romanian people said the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania.

BANK HOLIDAY — The Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, the day when Christians commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at the Calvary, may become a public holiday in Romania. This proposal was submitted to the Senate at the initiative of 42 MPs from all political parties. Among the reasons in favor of this initiative is the fact that Good Friday is a bank holiday in 16 out of the 28 EU states. Romania only has 14 days as public holidays while other countries have as many as 16 or 17.

HANDBALL — Romania’s national handball team defeated Switzerland 32-28, in a friendly match held on Wednesday evening away from home. The Romanians are taking part, on December 29th and 30th, in the Yellow Cup tournament, to be held in Winterthur, Switzerland. They will be up against Russia on Friday and, depending on the results on the first day, against Switzerland or Serbia. After returning to the country, the Romanian team will resume training ahead of the Carpati Trophy, which starts on January 5th and is also attended by Portugal, Tunisia and Bahrain. Coached by the Spanish Xavi Pascual, the Romanian team gets ready for the first round of the 2019 World Championship preliminaries, held between January 11 and 13 in Bolzano, Italy.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

28 December 2017
December 25, 2017 UPDATE

NATIVITY – Most Orthodox believers, Greek Catholics, Roman-Catholics and Protestants in Romania on Monday celebrated one of the greatest feasts of the Christian world, Christmas, the Nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ. In the morning, Christian believers went to the church for the Christmas mass, and children have gone carolling. In his Christmas message, Daniel, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, called on Orthodox Christians, the majority of the Romanian population, to show generosity to those in need. The patriarch has expressed his affection for the Romanian historical communities in the neighbouring countries, as well as for the Romanians living abroad. In his turn, cardinal Lucian of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church has wished “love, healing and renewal for our people everywhere. Ioan Robu, the Bucharest archbishop of the Roman-Catholic Church expressed hope in Europes chance to redress from a spiritual point of view. We recall that the Orthodox Churches which continue to use the Julian calendar, for instance the majority Orthodox believers in Russia, Ukraine, Serbia and Georgia, celebrate Christmas on January 7.

CHRISTMAS MESSAGES – “The feast of the Nativity of Jesus is an urge for compassion and solidarity with those who need our support, says Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, in his Christmas message. In turn, PM Mihai Tudose has called on the Romanians to always think to what brings them together. This is the first Christmas without King Michael I, but the Royal House of Romania celebrates the Nativity of Jesus as well as the life and accomplishments of Romanias fourth king, says the Custodian of the Crown, Princess Margareta, in a message to the Romanians. She recalled our entire nations shared grief at the Kings funeral. Romanias sovereign between 1940 and 1947, when he was forced to abdicate and into exile by a puppet communist government installed by the Soviet troops of occupation, Michael I passed away at the age of 96, in Switzerland, on December 5. He was buried on December 16 at Curtea de Arges, the final resting place of Romanian Royals.

POPE – During the traditional Christmas Eve mass, Pope Francis called on Catholic believers not to ignore the difficult situation of millions of migrants, driven away from they lands. Many migrants, the pope said, were forced to leave their homes because of leaders who see no problem in spilling innocent blood. According to good faith, he said, foreigners should be welcomed anywhere in the world. The number of refugees the world over exceeded 22 million people, the last cross-border flow of migrants being reported in Myanmar, where Rohingya Muslims fled their homes for fear of violence.

TOURISTS – Thousands of Romanians spend their winter holidays in the mountains, with the resorts in Prahova Valley being the most sough-after travel destinations. Predeal, Sinaia and Buşteni are almost fully booked. At Balea Lake, in the Fagaras Mountains, the new Ice Hotel, the only of its kind in Romania, was opened on Sunday. Most tourists who have already booked an icy room, are foreigners. Music is the featured theme this year, at the 13th ice hotel built in the Fagaras Mountains, situated at over 2,000 m in altitude. Each of the fifteen rooms has been decorated with snow and ice sculptures featuring Romanian and international music stars.

SAFETY – Some 23,000 policemen, gendarmes and fire-fighters are working on Christmas day, paying special heed to the prevention of severe public order incidents, containing anti-social behaviour, rendering traffic more easy, facilitating legal border crossing and managing emergency situations. Policemen and gendarmes will be present in crowded places, at fairs, trains stations, in resorts as well as in the proximity of the approximately 16,400 places of worship, where Christmas religious ceremonies are organised.

OBITUARY – Romanian scientists pay their last respects to the President of the Romanian Academy, Ionel Valentin Vlad, who passed away, at the age of 74. An expert on lasers and holography, Ionel Valentin Vlad has been a researcher at the National Institute of Research and Development for Laser Physics in Magurele, near Bucharest, where he set up and led the Holography Laboratory. With a career spanning 50 years, Vlad was elected president of the Romanian Academy in 2014.

SPORTS – Danish Helle Thomsen who is coaching both the Dutch national team and Romanias handball champion, CSM Bucharest, and Spanish Ambros Martin, who is coaching Romanias national team and the Hungarian team Gyor, are among the nominees for best international womens handball coach of the year 2017, in an end-of the year poll conducted by the portal Handball-Planet. Thomsen, who took over CSM Bucharest in summer and managed to bring the team to the main groups of the Champions League, got bronze medals with the Dutch team this month, at the World Championship in Germany. Martin only managed to take the national team to the eighth finals of the 2017 World Championship, the Romanian handball players sustaining a surprising defeat from the Czech Republic, but he won the Champions League in spring, with Gyor.

MADRID – Spanish King, Felipe VI, has called on the newly elected members of the Catalan regional parliament, to avoid a new confrontation, after the secessionist attempt in autumn, which divided Catalan society and rocked Spain. In his Christmas message, the King called on the MPs in Barcelona to cope with the problems facing all Catalans, with respect for pluralism and showing responsible thinking for the good of all. The messages comes days after on Thursday, the election in Catalonia were won by pro-independence parties, even though the party which got most votes was Ciudadanos, Liberal, and opposed to Catalonias independence. Against the backdrop of the political crisis, the severest in the past 40 years in Spain, the secessionists led by Carles Puigdemont were sacked on October 27 by the head of the central government, conservative Mariano Rajoy. Earlier that month, they had organised a referendum for Catalonias independence, which was however banned by the Spanish justice.

25 December 2017
December 25, 2017

NATIVITY – Most Orthodox believers, Greek Catholics, Roman-Catholics and Protestants in Romania are today celebrating one of the greatest feasts of the Christian world, Christmas, the Nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ. In the morning, Christian believers went to the church for the Christmas mass, and children have gone carolling. In his Christmas message, Daniel, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, called on Orthodox Christians, the majority of the Romanian population, to show generosity to those in need. The patriarch has expressed his affection for the Romanian historical communities in the neighbouring countries, as well as for the Romanians living abroad. In his turn, cardinal Lucian of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church has wished “love, healing and renewal for our people everywhere. Ioan Robu, the Bucharest archbishop of the Roman-Catholic Church expressed hope in Europes chance to redress from a spiritual point of view. We recall that the Orthodox Churches which continue to use the Julian calendar, for instance the majority Orthodox believers in Russia, Ukraine, Serbia and Georgia, celebrate Christmas on January 7.

CHRISTMAS MESSAGES – “The feast of the Nativity of Jesus is an urge for compassion and solidarity with those who need our support, says Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, in his Christmas message. In turn, PM Mihai Tudose has called on the Romanians to always think to what brings them together. This is the first Christmas without King Michael I, but the Royal House of Romania celebrates the Nativity of Jesus as well as the life and accomplishments of Romanias fourth king, says the Custodian of the Crown, Princess Margareta, in a message to the Romanians. She recalled our entire nations shared grief at the Kings funeral. Romanias sovereign between 1940 and 1947, when he was forced to abdicate and into exile by a puppet communist government installed by the Soviet troops of occupation, Michael I passed away at the age of 96, in Switzerland, on December 5. He was buried on December 16 at Curtea de Arges, the final resting place of Romanian Royals.

POPE – During the traditional Christmas Eve mass, Pope Francis called on Catholic believers not to ignore the difficult situation of millions of migrants, driven away from they lands. Many migrants, the pope said, were forced to leave their homes because of leaders who see no problem in spilling innocent blood. According to good faith, he said, foreigners should be welcomed anywhere in the world. The number of refugees the world over exceeded 22 million people, the last cross-border flow of migrants being reported in Myanmar, where Rohingya Muslims fled their homes for fear of violence.

TOURISTS – Thousands of Romanians spend their winter holidays in the mountains, with the resorts in Prahova Valley being the most sough-after travel destinations. Predeal, Sinaia and Buşteni are almost fully booked. At Balea Lake, in the Fagaras Mountains, the new Ice Hotel, the only of its kind in Romania, was opened on Sunday. Most tourists who have already booked an icy room, are foreigners. Music is the featured theme this year, at the 13th ice hotel built in the Fagaras Mountains, situated at over 2,000 m in altitude. Each of the fifteen rooms has been decorated with snow and ice sculptures featuring Romanian and international music stars.

SAFETY – Some 23,000 policemen, gendarmes and fire-fighters are working on Christmas day, paying special heed to the prevention of severe public order incidents, containing anti-social behaviour, rendering traffic more easy, facilitating legal border crossing and managing emergency situations. Policemen and gendarmes will be present in crowded places, at fairs, trains stations, in resorts as well as in the proximity of the approximately 16,400 places of worship, where Christmas religious ceremonies are organised.

OBITUARY – The President of the Romanian Academy, Ionel Valentin Vlad, has passed away, at the age of 74. An expert on lasers and holography, he furthered his studies in Paris. Ionel Valentin Vlad has been a researcher at the National Institute of Research and Development for Laser Physics in Magurele, near Bucharest, where he set up and led the Holography Laboratory. With a career spanning 50 years, Vlad was elected president of the Romanian Academy in 2014.

SPORTS – Danish Helle Thomsen who is coaching both the Dutch national team and Romanias handball champion, CSM Bucharest, and Spanish Ambros Martin, who is coaching Romanias national team and the Hungarian team Gyor, are among the nominees for best international womens handball coach of the year 2017, in an end-of the year poll conducted by the portal Handball-Planet. Thomsen, who took over CSM Bucharest in summer and managed to bring the team to the main groups of the Champions League, got bronze medals with the Dutch team this month, at the World Championship in Germany. Martin only managed to take the national team to the eighth finals of the 2017 World Championship, the Romanian handball players sustaining a surprising defeat from the Czech Republic, but he won the Champions League in spring, with Gyor.

MADRID – Spanish King, Felipe VI, has called on the newly elected members of the Catalan regional parliament, to avoid a new confrontation, after the secessionist attempt in autumn, which divided Catalan society and rocked Spain. In his Christmas message, the King called on the MPs in Barcelona to cope with the problems facing all Catalans, with respect for pluralism and showing responsible thinking for the good of all. The messages comes days after on Thursday, the election in Catalonia were won by pro-independence parties, even though the party which got most votes was Ciudadanos, Liberal, and opposed to Catalonias independence. Against the backdrop of the political crisis, the severest in the past 40 years in Spain, the secessionists led by Carles Puigdemont were sacked on October 27 by the head of the central government, conservative Mariano Rajoy. Earlier that month, they had organised a referendum for Catalonias independence, which was however banned by the Spanish justice.

25 December 2017
The Romanian Academy’s 150th anniversary

The consolidation of the modern Romanian state began in 1866. On April 1st the same year, the future Romanian Academy was established. It was meant to rally Romania’s outstanding intellectuals and scientists. Its initial name was The Romanian Literary Society. A year later, on August 1st, 1867, its name was changed into The Romanian Academic Society. It was named The Romanian Academy in 1879, a year after Romania had become an independent and sovereign state, in the wake of the 1877-1878 war.

In 1948, when the People’s Republic of Romania was proclaimed and the communist regime forcefully turned the Society into a state-run institution, the name of The Romanian Academy was changed into The Academy of the People’s Republic of Romania. As soon as the official name of the country was changed into The Socialist Republic of Romania in 1965, the Academy would become The Academy of the Socialist Republic of Romania. In 1990, the institution resumed its historically justified name, that of The Romanian Academy, which the institution had in 1879.

The first pre-modern academies in the Romanian space were established in Wallachia’s capital city, Bucharest, in 1689, during the rule of prince Constantin Brancoveanu, as well as in Moldavia’s capital city Iasi, in 1707, during the rule of prince Antioh Cantemir, the father of the future ruling prince and outstanding scholar Dimitrie Cantemir. The two academies provided the foundation for the future University of Iasi in 1860 and the University of Bucharest in 1864, respectively.

The Romanian space had been undergoing a modernization process in the second half of the 19th century. For the advancement of knowledge, modernization entailed the setting up of an authoritative body, meant to certify the researchers’ level of knowledge and specialized competence. At this point, we might as well add that the cultural project of the Romanian Academy went hand in hand with the political one. Romantic intellectuals came up with the idea of an academic society capable of steering the activity of Romanian scholars for the political and cultural unity of all Romanians.

The Romantic cultural and political effervescence laid the foundation of the Academy, thanks to the efforts of the 21 founding members from all Romanian-inhabited provinces. Three of them came from Moldavia, Bessarabia, Wallachia and Transylvania each and two of them from Banat, Maramures, Bukovina and Macedonia each.

Initially, the Academic Society did systematic research on the language, since the Society itself was founded by philologists. The Academic Society standardized the orthography of the Romanian language, compiled a Grammar of Romanian and edited a Dictionary of the Romanian language. Actually, the Academy awarded its first prize ever in 1867 to Timotei Cipariu, a philologist of scintillating intellectual capacity, who wrote the first part of the aforementioned Grammar of Romanian. After 1879, when the Academic Society became the Romanian Academy, its research gained scope, including history, fine arts and sciences. The Academy started off with three sections and their number grew to seven at present.

The first president of the future Romanian Academy was writer Ion Heliade Radulescu. He was one of the foremost Romantic writers, an encyclopaedist, political activist and advocate of the national idea, of the union of Wallachia and Moldavia. Ever since its foundation, the number of the Academy members has been growing, also including foreign intellectuals whose research focused on Romanian studies. The author of “The Dictionary of Romanian Academicians 1866-1999, biographer Dorina Rusu listed 1,494 Academy members, 980 of whom were Romanian and 514 foreign. Countries with the largest number of members of the Romanian Academy were France, with 163 members, Germany, with 60 members, Italy, with 48 members, the USA with 39 members, England with 22 members, the USSR and Russia, with 20 members. Tenure members of the Romanian Academy, as well as corresponding and honorary members have been granted a lifetime membership. Members can also be elected post-mortem.

The Romanian Academy’s heyday was between the two world wars, when the institution enjoyed the support of the new Romanian state, which was formed after 1918, while benefiting from the effervescence triggered by the new political and cultural order. However, after 1945, the communist regime put an end to the Romanian Academy’s upward trend and in 1948 reorganized the Romanian Academy on Soviet principles. Gaining membership of the Academy was solely based on political criteria. Also, the freedom of expression was suppressed; no less than ninety-eight members of the old Academy were expelled from the institution, since they allegedly failed to meet the political criteria of the time. One of them was the outstanding historian Gheorghe Bratianu, who died in the Sighet prison in 1953. It was not until 1962 that the Academy saw a certain opening to Western culture and science.

The Romanian Academy regained its freedom in 1990. New members were accepted, including the winner of the 1975 Nobel Prize for Medicine, George Emil Palade, human rights activist Elie Wiesel and Pope John Paul the second, the first Pope to have visited Romania, a country with a predominantly Orthodox population, in 1999.

9 April 2016
The Romanian Academy celebrates 150 years of existence

The Romanian Academy on Monday celebrated 150 years of existence. A solemn ceremony marked the event, bringing together representatives of the authorities, foreign guests, presidents of European academies, men of culture and Romanian scholars, members of the Romanian Academy and contributors from across the country and abroad.

Founded in 1866 under the name of the Romanian Literary Society, the institution was later known as the Romanian Academic Society, quickly growing into a landmark of Romanian culture and science. In March 1879 the institution changed its name again into the Romanian Academy. Its members include renowned scholars of national and international status in a plethora of fields, from history, philosophy and linguistics to nuclear physics, chemistry, macro- and micro-biology.

At present the Academy comprises 84 tenure members, 76 corresponding members, 45 honorary members, of whom six from abroad. In his opening address, the president of the Romanian Academy Ionel-Valentin Vlad said that after 150 years of uninterrupted activity, the Academy had fulfilled its role to protect national identity and its profound spiritual values:

“The Romanian Academy is fulfilling an extremely important long-term development project, linked to Romanian culture, seen from a national and universal perspective, with clear-cut objectives in the field of education, making culture more appealing to the population, particularly the younger generations”.

Attending the event President Klaus Iohannis highlighted the importance of the Romanian Academy in terms of the dialogue between various cultures.

“In our society, this top-notch institution is a landmark of excellence for the new elites, as well as for the Romanian intellectuals living and working abroad for some time”.

The President also said that the trust the Academy enjoys at present enabled the institution to get involved in Romania’s development priority projects with utmost credibility and professionalism. In turn, Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos said the Government wanted a solid partnership with the Romanian Academy, so as to make better use of the experience and analyses of this institution, for the citizens’ benefit.

Prime Minister Ciolos recalled the Academy already had a working strategy for Romania’s development in the next 20 years, calling for a debate on this topic over the following period that should result in a plan to transform the country, reform mentalities and shift its system of values.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

5 April 2016
April 4, 2016 UPDATE

ROMANIAN ACADEMY – The Romanian Academy on Monday celebrated 150 years of existence. A solemn ceremony marked the event, bringing together representatives of the authorities, foreign guests, presidents of European academies, men of culture and Romanian scholars, members of the Romanian academy and contributors from across the country and abroad. Founded in 1866 under the name of the Romanian Literary Society, the institution was later known as the Romanian Academic Society, quickly growing into a landmark of Romanian culture and science. In 1879 the institution changed its name again into the Romanian Academy. Its members include renowned scholars of national and international status in a plethora of fields, from history, philosophy and linguistics to nuclear physics, chemistry, macro- and micro-biology. At present the Academy comprises 84 tenure members, 76 contributors, 45 honorary members, of whom six from abroad.

MOTION – The Chamber of Deputies on Monday started debating, in a plenary session, the first simple motion against a member of the technocratic cabinet led by Dacian Ciolos. The initiators of the document, Romanias Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, accuse Justice Minister Raluca Pruna that the ordinance she promotes, on wiretapping in criminal proceedings would turn Romania into an unsafe state, putting human rights up for debate, instead of fundamentally observing them. While the Liberals dismissed the initiative as “hilarious, the Social-Democrats said they would neither support nor file simple motions, but they would call for a cabinet reshuffle. The motion is to be voted upon on Wednesday.

PROTEST – Part of the family physicians in Romania on Monday continued the strike started last week. They will not issue prescriptions and referrals, as they did on Friday. The protest concerns the delays in signing the framework agreement for 2016 and the lack of funding for general practitioners. Doctors threaten to call a token strike over the following days unless their demands are met.

PANAMA PAPERS – Heads of state and high-ranking officials from all over the world, billionaires, renowned athletes and businessmen, including from Romania, as well as infamous criminal networks all transpire in a huge leak of confidential documents of the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, revealing how the company manages the estates of the worlds richest and most famous people in offshore accounts. According to the BBC, the documents were investigated by journalists from 70 countries, and seem to be the hugest information leak on global corruption. The documents mention such names as the President of Argentina, the Prime Minister of Iceland, the President of Ukraine, the King of Saudi Arabia, close associates of the Russian and Chinese presidents, or current and former professional athletes, such as Michel Platini and Lionel Messi

TRANSDNIESTER – The foreign ministers of Russia and the Republic of Moldova, Sergey Lavrov and Andrei Galbur, respectively, on Monday confirmed in Moscow their governments support for the resumption of negotiations in the 5+2 format, in the effort to solve the conflict between Chishinau and Tiraspol. Negotiations in this format – with the participation of Chishinau and Tiraspol, alongside Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE as mediator and the US and the EU as observers – have been suspended since 2014. Andrei Galbur has expressed hope the visits paid to Chishinau and Tiraspol on Tuesday and Wednesday by representatives, mediators and international observers will contribute to the fast resumption of negotiations, without prerequisites. We recall that Transdniester de facto, got out of Chishinaus control in 1992, following an armed conflict that left hundreds of dead, and which ended with the intervention of the Russian troops, on the separatists side.

IMMIGRANTS – Hundreds of illegal immigrants, mostly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, have been shipped back to Turkey from Lesbos and Chios islands in Greece, FRONTEX reports. This is the first such shipment of illegal migrants being deported to Turkey, based on the readmission agreement Turkey signed with the EU on March 18. The provisions of the agreement apply to all illegal migrants arrived in Turkey via Greece starting March 20. France Press news agency estimates some 6,000 people will be shipped back. Under the agreement, for every migrant deported to Turkey via the Greek Islands, another Syrian will be resettled in the EU. The first Syrian asylum-seekers arrived in Germany on Monday.

CLASHES – Violent clashes continue between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan with a majority Armenian population. The conflict is high on the agenda of next weeks meeting of the OSCE Minsk Group, co-chaired by Russia, the United States and France. Fighting between the two sides over the region started in 1988 and ended in 1994, killing over 30,000 people in the process and displacing hundreds of thousands of Azeri refugees.

SPORTS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep dropped one place in WTA standings, now ranking 6th. She was outranked by Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, who last week won the tennis tournament in Miami, the US. Halep was knocked out in the quarterfinals, losing to Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland. In news from handball, the womens team Corona Brasov lost to TuS Metzingen of Germany 22-26 on home turf, in the first leg of the EHF Cup semi-finals. The return leg will be played on April 9 in Germany.

(Translated by Vlad Palcu and Diana Vijeu)

4 April 2016
April 4, 2016

ROMANIAN ACADEMY — The Romanian Academy today celebrates 150 years of existence. A solemn ceremony marked the event, bringing together representatives of the authorities, foreign guests, presidents of European academies, men of culture and Romanian scholars, members of the Romanian academy and contributors from across the country and abroad. Founded in 1866 under the name of the Romanian Literary Society, the institution was later known as the Romanian Academic Society, quickly growing into a landmark of Romanian culture and science. In 1879 the institution changed its name again into the Romanian Academy. Its members include renowned scholars of national and international status in a plethora of fields, from history, philosophy and linguistics to nuclear physics, chemistry, macro- and micro-biology. At present the Academy comprises 84 tenure members, 76 contributors, 45 honorary members, of whom six from abroad.

MOTION — The Chamber of Deputies is today debating the first simple motion against the technocratic Cabinet led by Dacian Ciolos, filed by the Group of Conservatives and Liberals from Romania and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians from Romania. The two parties accuse Justice Minister Raluca Pruna that her ordinance on wiretapping in criminal proceedings puts human rights up for debate, instead of fundamentally observing them. While the Liberals dismissed the initiative as ‘hilarious’, the Social-Democrats said they would neither support nor file simple motions, although calling for a Cabinet reshuffle.

PROTEST — Part of the family physicians in Romania continue today the strike action started last week. They will not issue prescriptions and referrals, as they did on Friday. The protest concerns the delays in signing the framework agreement for 2016 and the lack of funding for general practitioners. Doctors threaten to call a warning strike over the following days unless their demands are met.

PANAMA PAPERS — Heads of state and high-ranking officials from all over the world, billionaires, renowned athletes and businessmen, including from Romania, as well as infamous criminal networks all transpire in a huge leak of confidential documents of the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, revealing how the company manages the estates of the world’s richest and most famous people in offshore accounts. According to the BBC, the documents were investigated by journalists from 70 countries, and seem to be the hugest information leak on global corruption. The documents mention such names as the Prime Minister of Iceland, the President of Ukraine, the King of Saudi Arabia, close associates of the Russian and Chinese presidents, or current and former professional athletes, such as Michel Platini and Lionel Messi.

IMMIGRANTS — Hundreds of illegal immigrants, mostly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, are today being shipped back to Turkey from Lesbos and Chios islands in Greece, FRONTEX reports. This is the first such shipment of illegal migrants being deported to Turkey, based on the readmission agreement Turkey signed with the EU on March 18. The provisions of the agreement apply to all illegal migrants arrived in Turkey via Greece starting March 20. France Press news agency estimates some 6,000 people will be shipped back. Under the agreement, for every Syrian citizens deported to Turkey via the Greek Islands, another Syrian will be resettled in the EU. The first Syrian asylum-seekers arrived in Germany today.

CLASHES — Violent clashes continue between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan with a majority Armenian population. The conflict is high on the agenda of next week’s meeting of the OSCE Minsk Group, co-chaired by Russia, the United States and France. Fighting between the two sides over the region started in 1988 and ended in 1994, killing over 30,000 people in the process and displacing hundreds of thousands of Azeri refugees.

WATER POLO — The Romanian men’s water polo team is today playing France as part of the pre-Olympic tournament in Trieste, Italy. On Sunday, in its debut match, Romania defeated Slovakia 13-11. Also playing in Group A are Canada, Russia and Hungary. The first four teams in the group tables will qualify to the quarterfinals, while the semi-finalists will qualify to the Rio Olympics.

SPORTS — Romanian tennis player Simona Halep dropped one place in WTA standings, now ranking 6th. She was outranked by Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, who last week won the tennis tournament in Miami, the US. Halep was knocked out in the quarterfinals, losing to Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland. In news from handball, the women’s team Corona Brasov lost to TuS Metzingen of Germany 22-26 on home turf, in the first leg of the EHF Cup semi-finals. The return leg will be played on April 9 in Germany.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

4 April 2016
From mathematics to poetry

“I’ve always believed that one of the great opportunities in my life was that of choosing this profession, that of teacher and researcher of mathematics and all its extensions, which for me reach everywhere,” said Solomon Marcus. His is a life lived under the question he put to himself as a child: ‘What if I looked further and further?’

“The world is what we are able to see. And if our imagination is sufficiently rich, the world we live in is equally rich.”

Solomon Marcus is the author of many interdisciplinary studies, applying mathematics in linguistics, theatre, poetry, natural and social sciences, visual arts, etc. He has even received an award for literary criticism. His work has been translated in many languages and he published over 50 books and hundreds of science articles in Romania and abroad.

For Solomon Marcus, the first encounter with poetry was when he was around 15, reading a poem by Eminescu. He said: “It was like being under a spell. I later experienced the same state when I started reading Rilke, Edgar Allan Poe and Baudelaire. I only turned to mathematics much later, because the mathematics taught in school was not orientated towards ideas, a vision, but was a victim of a mechanical process. It cultivated a sense of order, but it wasn’t anything profound”. Solomon Marcu also talks his interest in other disciplines besides mathematics:

“The first language models studied in informatics came from biology: the nervous system and then heredity. What we in fact dealing with here is an intellectual process that engages a great variety of disciplines: linguistics, mathematics, logic, biology, psychology, and much more. This is how I arrived at semiotics. I came to realise that knowledge cannot be limited to a single discipline.”

You don’t have to have a degree to understand literature, but that’s not the case with mathematics, which requires a systematic learning process, says Solomon Marcus:

“The grandeur of the spectacle of human knowledge comes first and foremost through the way in which the unity of the world manifests itself in the most diverse of ways. I’m referring to a certain unity, a kind of profound simplicity. As long as we stick to a truncated representation, which splits the world into different slices, each slice with its own vision, we will not achieve a unifying vision. We need to be able to see what the world looks like even when we look at specific images coming from all directions. We should, for example, realise that isomerism in chemistry is in its essence of the same nature as human heredity and the way we use sounds in language, and they are all subject to the idea that structure prevails over substance. All this and the profound similarity between apparently varied appearances led to the emergence of structuralism. It is here that we find the pleasure of knowledge and the satisfaction of the fact that you understand the world.”

The Internet is a great tool for this kind of understanding, says Solomon Marcus:

“The Internet is still young, so we are in a period of transition, as we find both many scholars who are not yet Internet literate and young Internet enthusiasts who cringe at the suggestion that they may enter an actual library and consult a source that predates the Internet.”

Even if at some point the Internet will take over printed culture, says Solomon Marcus, for the time being we have to have combined education, because we are at an important crossroads.

13 March 2015